This invention relates generally to footwear, and more specifically pertains to sandals, thongs, slip-ons and the like where the strap, may be reversed, in order to change the aesthetics, coloration, indicia, or other appearance of the overall footwear.
Numerous styles of footwear, constructed of various components and for achieving multiple purposes, have long existed in the prior art. Most of these innovations have been in the area of sandals which have enjoyed resurgence in recent years. Various styles or modifications to the sandals, as in their strap configurations, to make them more comfortable or suitable to rugged use have been considered in the prior art. Sandals as a class borrow various accessories from closed shoe footwear, such as tongue flaps.
Recent trends have even considered reversing various components of footwear, such as tongues, to alter the aesthetics of, to change the style of, and to improve the appearance of footwear when worn. For example, the Benjamin U.S. Pat. No. 2,049,347, shows a shoe wherein a strap, held by one or more of D-Rings, can be turned to reverse the positioning of the strap within the shoe structure. In addition, the patent to Tonkel, No. 4,805,321, shows the use of a separable tongue held by Velcro to its vamp, but which must be removed to provide for its turning and to vary the appearance of the shoe. However, sandals have retained the basic form of a strap secured to a sole.
The current invention modifies the strap of an open shoe, or sandal. The modifications add further variations in the use of the sandal, enhance its styling, and further enhance the attractiveness of the sandal, by providing alternative uses and applications to its components particularly the strap, when structured into the sandal itself.